N00302:452
Mercy magnified on a penitent prodigal, or A brief discourse, wherein Christs parable of…
Mercy magnified on a penitent prodigal, or A brief discourse, wherein Christs parable of the lost son found, is opened and applied, as it was delivered in sundry sermons, / by Samuel Willard teacher of a church in Boston in New-England. ; [Two lines from Luke]
printed by Samuel Green for Samuel Philips, 1684
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Answ. We are here to consider that the Prodigal was not yet returned, nor returning to his father, but only upon deliberation about it; nor yet come to a resolution in the thing; in which resolution may be observed (when we come to it) the first working of saving Grace, so that the encouragement which is here denoted is that which helped him to a preparatory hope, and was a mean to keep him from utter despair. That there is such an hope, is asserted to by our Divines; an hope before faith, keeping the soul from falling into deadly discouragement, or utterly refusing to attend upon any means for his good, which must needs be the fruit of utter despair. Hope of obtaining the end, is the very motive to using the means: Did not the perishing sinner conceive some hope that he might find good in the ways of Gods appointment, he would certainly reject them. Now this hope is not an effect or fruit of justifying faith, but precedent, and oftentimes in order to it. And if we carry in mind, that the spirit of God deals with sinners after the manner of reasonable creatures, we may the better conceive of this hope, and the encouragement arising from it; which may be in a few things.
Answ. We are here to consider that the Prodigal was not yet returned, nor returning to his father, but only upon deliberation about it; nor yet come to a resolution in the thing; in which resolution may be observed (when we come to it) the first working of saving Grace, so that the encouragement which is here denoted is that which helped him to a preparatory hope, and was a mean to keep him from utter despair. That there is such an hope, is asserted to by our Divines; an hope before faith, keeping the soul from falling into deadly discouragement, or utterly refusing to attend upon any means for his good, which must needs be the fruit of utter despair. Hope of obtaining the end, is the very motive to using the means: Did not the perishing sinner conceive some hope that he might find good in the ways of Gods appointment, he would certainly reject them. Now this hope is not an effect or fruit of justifying faith, but precedent, and oftentimes in order to it. And if we carry in mind, that the spirit of God deals with sinners after the manner of reasonable creatures, we may the better conceive of this hope, and the encouragment arising from it; which may be in a few things.